Other large-mouth adaptations currently used by baleen whales, like a wide upper jaw, are present in the J. hunderi fossil, which means their large mouths developed before filter-feeding did.

There remains no proof of such a species, but the discovery of Maiabalaena suggests that one ancient species of whale may have needed neither teeth nor baleen to survive. The upper jaw and skull ...

Modern whales are toothless and so capture their prey using their hallmark adaptation: baleen, a series of horny filtering combs that line the upper jaw. Baleen is the key feature that allowed ...

This image shows the upper jaw and skull of Maiabalaena nesbittae. Whales were the first mammals to evolve baleen, and no other mammal uses any anatomical structure even remotely similar to it to ...

Baleen whales have a special structure in their mouth that enables them to filter feed. Instead of teeth, they have baleen plates that hang down from their upper jaw. These are made from keratin – the ...

Gliding gracefully through the marine waters, the blue whale is considered to be the largest creature to have ever existed.

Baleen whales are the titans of the ocean, the largest animals to have ever lived. The record holder is the blue whale (Balaenoptera musculus), which can reach lengths of up to 30 meters.

Baleen–or whalebone–is a hard substance made up of keratin. It grows from the whale’s upper jaw in plates with bristle-like fringes. It works like a sieve to filter out the small fish or ...

forming a soft and tough fibrous curtain dangling from the upper jaw in baleen whales,” according to the study. During filter feeding, the sturdy baleen plates entrap prey as water is forced out.